Montrail Blue Ridge GTX!

[porsche4life]

Well boys I fear it is coming time to retire my favorite pair of boots... they are about 3yrs old now and have been with me thru thousands of miles... Always my "Go to" shoes... Went with me thru my Philmont experience with nary a blister... Well... Now one of them has a crack in the plastic foot bed under the cloth.... It squeaks when I walk and rubs my toe funny. Can that be fixed? Or do I need to find another pair... Anybody know where I can find some NOS in US 11?

[porsche4life]

And yes... Those are the ORIGINAL laces.... I'm impressed.... Well worth the 180 I paid

[porsche4life]

In my best Ben Stein voice... "Anybody, Anybody?"

[speeder]

Have you tried eBay? I find nearly everything there.

Oh wait, here they are:

Montrail, Clothing, Shoes Accessories, Sporting Goods. Great deals on eBay!

[porsche4life]

Sure have Dennis.... Not a single pair of Blue ridges in 11.... One pair of 10.5s used....

[Talewinds]

Let me start by saying that those are indeed a good pair of boots.
There was unfortunately a pretty significant quality issue in the last year or so that forced Montrail to recall a LOT of product. Resolved or not, they have had a difficult time putting sufficient product back on store shelves.
I ordered a pair of size 12 Mountain Masochist shoes earlier last year and when I received them, although labeled correctly, were AT LEAST 3 sizes too small, possibly more. So I suppose their production problems have not been entirely cured.
So that's the bad news.

The good news is that there is an absolute mountain of great hiking boots and brands out there these days.
My short list:
Scarpa Mustang GTX
Scarpa Barun GTX
Scarpa Kailash
....They are all variations on a theme....
Asolo Fugitive GTX
Asolo Powermatic 200 GV
Kayland Zephyr
New Balance 1500 Ranier

The list could get long. I'll leave it with this opinion. As we're all aware, quality control and Chinese-made are not often used in the same sentence. This applies to hiking boots as much or more than any other market out there. Both Scarpa and Asolo products are made in Italy and other parts of Europe, but their prices remain right in line with the average price of good hiking boots these days, or about $240.
Scarpa in particular is extremely selective about the quality of leathers used.

[Tishabet]

+ 1 on Scarpa, they make an excellent boot. I would also check out Alico and La Sportiva.

If the only problem with your montrails is the plastic piece it can definitely be fixed; there is a cobbler in seattle named dave page who has resoled my la sportiva makalus twice and is well regarded for rejuvenating boots... I would give him a call.

[porsche4life]

Got any contact info? I would love to get these fixed.

[creaturecat]

Meindl has fine hiking boots. Made in Germany.

[Tishabet]

Originally Posted by porsche4life

Got any contact info? I would love to get these fixed.

Dave Page, Cobbler

[porsche4life]

Thanks Grant.... Looks Like I will go that route... Wonder if they can get those stains out of the leather.....

[slodave]

Sidney... How are the bottoms? It almost looks like there is no tread left.

[porsche4life]

Theres some tread left.... Can that not be replaced?

[slodave]

If it could Sidney, by the time you are done, you will have paid for a new pair of boots. I understand wanting to keep these boots, but they are consumables.

[Tishabet]

Originally Posted by slodave

If it could Sidney, by the time you are done, you will have paid for a new pair of boots. I understand wanting to keep these boots, but they are consumables.

This is a good point... my most recent resole from dave page using la sportiva branded vibram soles came out to around $100.

[Talewinds]

Something else that has not been brought up yet, no matter how great the cobbler, they just cannot rejuvenate worn out boots.
If you indeed have a couple of thousand miles on them, well, that's about 1500 miles too many.
Good boots can "last" a lifetime, and as everybody knows, nothing beats a comfortable pair of shoes. But when hiking tough terrain and often with very heavy loads on your back you are doing your feet, and the rest of yourself harm by hiking in worn out boots.
Do your body a favor and go get some new boots.

[porsche4life]

Went to my favorite backpacking store... tried on the latest greatest montrail... It SUCKS.... Did try on a pair of Asolo Fugitives... that will be my next pair... just a matter of funding them....


Guy at the store saw my Montrails and got to asking me questions.... I hadn't planned on trying anything on today but he was asking me how I liked mine b/c he's had a pair for years and loves them. Anyway he got me to try on the boots even though I wasn't buying today... I spent about an hour in there looking at boots and BSing with the staff... thats why I love Backwoods... Everyone in there is a serious hiker and knows the gear....

[Talewinds]

That's a good choice, I've been rocking the Fugitive for 3 years now and they've been solid. I hit them once a year w/ spray on waterproofing after a good bath.
They're available EVERYWHERE.
Might want to consider going a half size larger? Although they seem to fit perfectly at rest, after a long day and my feet have swelled, and a thick pair of Smartwools, the boots fit a bit snug.
Blisters were never a problem after I had properly broken my feet in

[porsche4life]

Afraid a half size larger would ruin it for my right foot... my left is slightly bigger anyways.... Like I could wear a 10.5 on the right... not the left...